A domineering country girl flirts with her son, and Commander Huo can't resist.

Joan's butt was almost numb from sitting so long; the chairs at home were hard and uncomfortable to sit on.

Normally, she doesn't need to sit for this long when she goes to work.

But now there are always people coming and going at her house, so she has to keep them company and talk to them.

Huo Jiyun, on the other hand, hid in the side room and refused to come out.

Just as Joan was listening to others talk, her head was buzzing.

The child who was playing in front of the house suddenly ran back.

"Mom! A little jeep is here!" Huo Chen exclaimed excitedly.

Huo Ning added, "They're coming to our house!"

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, could it be that Chief Engineer Zhao came to wish her a Happy New Year?

There's no need to be so polite.

Qiao An quickly got up and straightened the corner of her clothes.

People who came to visit nearby were very excited when they heard what the child said.

Another car has arrived? It's Chong Qiaoan again.

What did she do in town to be so amazing?

A high-ranking official specially drove over to wish her a Happy New Year.

As soon as Qiao An stepped out of the house, she heard the sound of brakes.

Then she saw Qi Guoqiang, with a serious expression, rush into the yard.

"Qi Gong? What brings you here?" Qiao An's gaze passed over him and looked behind him.

nobody.

"Joan, come with me to the machine tool factory right now, something's happened again!"

Joan was surprised and helpless.

Is this machine tool factory cursed against us? Every other day, either the machines break down or there's a spy in the factory.

"Mr. Qi, which machine broke down this time?"

Qi Guoqiang calmed himself down. "The machine for installing the guide rails is broken."

"That was originally imported from North Sri Lanka. It was nearing the end of its service life. Chief Engineer Zhao managed to assemble it using our domestically produced equipment and made do for several years. Today, it is finally completely scrapped."

"Then you should apply for domestically produced equipment," Qiao An said.

"We'd like to, too, but the approval process keeps stalling. Today, the director of the provincial party committee office and experts from the Beijing Academy of Sciences are here too, right now in the workshop. They're saying if it's not fixed today, they'll punish my mentor and the party secretary!"

"Qiao An, please go and save my master!"

Qi Guoqiang was anxious and even disregarded the rules of propriety between men and women, grabbing Qiao An's arm.

"Qi Gong, what are you doing?"

Hearing the noise, Huo Jiyun came out of the side room and grabbed his arm.

"I'm so sorry, I'm really sorry, I was just too anxious," Qi Guoqiang apologized repeatedly.

"An'an, if you don't want to go, then don't go. With me here, no one can force you." Huo Jiyun was displeased.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Qiao An finally got to rest at home, but the machine tool factory really knows how to pick its days.

Qiao An bit her lower lip. To be honest, she didn't want to go, but after the New Year, she was going to take over the canteen window of the machine tool factory. She wanted to leave a good impression on the leaders so that it would be easier to do business in the future.

"I'll go," Qiao An said, turning to Qi Guoqiang. "Engineer Qi, although I agree to go, I'm not sure if I can fix it. I'm human, not a god."

"Yes, yes, I know. Your presence would be a huge help to us."

Huo Jiyun washed his hands. "I'll go with you."

"OK."

Qiao An saw the guests off with embarrassment and then reminded Huo Fang to lock the door.

Then he got into the car with Huo Jiyun.

Soon, those who left Qiao An's house went to visit other people's homes.

The news that the machine tool factory had come to invite Qiao An on the first day of the Lunar New Year quickly spread.

Everyone praised Joan for her abilities, and many people even compared Joan to their own children.

Shen Xiufang was resting on the kang (heated brick bed) at her parents' home when she heard the news.

Deng Yufen grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds. "What's so great about it? No matter how powerful you are, you still live in our Lianchi Village. You're just an old woman from the countryside."

"If the machine tool factory really valued her, why didn't they let her work there? Why didn't they give her some kind of job?"

"To put it bluntly, isn't it just that they look down on her?"

The elderly women sitting next to her either nodded or shook their heads.

"Yufen, you can't say that. If people really looked down on her, would they pick her up in their cars so many times? I heard that even the secretary of our commune doesn't have a car."

"Isn't that right? Besides, Qiao An's official job is quite impressive, working in the police station canteen, where there's plenty of lucrative business. I visited their house today for the New Year, and they bought a lot of milk candy and red shrimp pastries. Oh, and they even had rare treats like raisins."

Hearing these words, Shen Xiufang's face grew increasingly grim.

The Huo family has three sons in total. The second wife and her husband are both successful and earn money, while the third wife has the help of her parents-in-law.

In short, they were the most generous, yet they lived the worst lives.

When she went back to her parents' home for the Chinese New Year, many people gossiped, and even Deng Yufen felt embarrassed and wanted her to go back quickly.

But going back now would be even more annoying.

Wang Shuyun was sent back to her parents' home after being beaten, and her father-in-law broke his leg. Wasn't she just going home to serve him?

Who would want to serve a wretched old man?

Shen Xiufang leaned against the quilt, her thoughts already drifting elsewhere.

......

The little jeep was driving very fast, making Qiao An sway from side to side.

Huo Jiyun pulled her into his arms. "An'an, the kang (heated brick bed) is fixed..."

He whispered in Joanne's ear, "Let's test how strong it is tonight."

Qiao An's face flushed red, and she reached out and pinched Huo Jiyun's waist hard.

"Hiss!" Huo Jiyun gasped in pain.

But there was no anger on his face; instead, he smiled and watched Qiao An's angry little expression.

If Qi Guoqiang hadn't been there, he really would have liked to go up and kiss him.

The little jeep sped along, leaving sparks and flashes, and "whoosh"ed into the machine tool factory, coming to a steady stop at the entrance of the fourth workshop.

Upon hearing the sound of brakes, Zhao Zhengang and Yu Linzhou quickly walked outside.

Wei Xiangjun and Xu Zhengqiang followed, wanting to see who Zhao Zhengang had invited.

Seeing Huo Jiyun and Qiao An get out of the car, Wei Xiangjun subconsciously looked at Huo Jiyun.

In his mind, mechanical engineering was naturally a male profession.

However, this man looks too young; he definitely didn't study abroad.

Where did he come from?

Wei Xiangjun took two quick steps, grasped Huo Jiyun's hand, and said, "Comrade, I am Wei Xiangjun, deputy director of the Mechanical Engineering Research Office of the Beijing Academy of Sciences. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Uh... Hello, Deputy Director Wei," Huo Jiyun replied stiffly.

"Comrade Qiao An, where do you work? At the provincial capital's bearing factory? Or at the Wanzhou County gear factory?"

Wei Xiangjun began to investigate his background.

At this moment, Zhao Zhengang walked past him and stood in front of Qiao An. "Qiao An, come with me. Let me tell you what's going on."

Qiao An glanced at Wei Xiangjun and followed Zhao Zhengang into the workshop.

Huo Jiyun withdrew his right hand at this moment, leaving Wei Xiangjun's hand awkwardly suspended in mid-air.

"Excuse me, I am Qiao An's husband, Huo Jiyun." Huo Jiyun's words were firm and resolute.

Neither Wei Xiangjun nor Xu Zhengqiang reacted.

The specially appointed expert mentioned by Zhao Zhengang and Yu Linzhou turned out to be a woman in her early twenties.

Are they seeing things, or have Zhao Zhengang and his group gone mad?

The two exchanged a glance and quickly turned to walk towards the workshop.

Huo Jiyun and Qi Guoqiang followed slowly.

This is Huo Jiyun's second time visiting the machine tool factory. The last time he came here, he was injured while saving Qiao An, and it was then that he learned that Qiao An was actually a hidden mechanical genius.

Today was the first time he had seen Joan repair these very complicated-looking machines in person.